Interesting, even if hard to grasp!

I was watching a seminar today and came across a bit of interesting information. Needed information - for I was frustrated with the behavior of someone that I know. What this lady said in this seminar was this: ALL behavior comes from good intentions. What? I was like... that is rediculous, how can that be? But, the more I roll it around and think about it - it does make sense. People do things that solve something for themselves. From the nicest kind gesture to that of a terrorist. So, when I look back on the behavior of this person who is behaving badly - it is good to remember that what they are doing is solving something for themselves. My question now is: What? What are they solving? When I say solving... it may be a bit more in depth like 'it releaves a need in them'. From their own paradigm - a need to escape, a need to be noticed, wanted, loved, or a belief they have. It is all very interesting and it makes me understand other people better (even if I do not agree with them).

Behavior revisited

ANYTHING that is reinforced, is likely to occur again.
This is true for all sane behavior. Be it human or animal.
Lets us get better acquainted with reinforcement. What is reinforcement? A reinforcer is a stimulus that follows a behavior. Now there are two kinds of reinforcement - positive and negative. Positive reinforcement is when something (a stimulus) happens after a behavior - causing that behavior to strengthen.
Negative reinforcement is when something (a stimulus) is removed - causing the behavior to strengthen.
Yes... you read that right. BOTH cause the behavior to strengthen.
For example:
Positive reinforcement - if a person gives a dog a treat every time he lays down - he will start to throw that behavior to them. He will lay down more and more... if they continue to positively reinforce his behavior.
Negative reinforcement (escape) - if a mouse is being shocked and realizes that pushing a lever makes the shock go away... the mouse will push the lever.
Negative reinforcement (avoidance) - if a person knows that when the buzzer goes off, he has ten seconds to push a button before a loud annoying sound plays over loud speakers - the person will push the button to avoid the sound.
One more example of both positive and negative reinforcement is a parent and child at the store. On the child's side of things if they give out a negative reinforcer such as screaming; in order to avoid the child's 'fit' a parent will hand the child something from the store (candy, toy, games), increasing the chances that the next visit to the store...the child will apply the negative reinforcer. On the parents side of things if they positively reinforce negative behavior (a screaming fit) with something the child wants - it increases the chances that they get exactly what they are reinforcing... a screaming fit. This is what you call a double whammy!!

So now, go out and with an animal or a person you interact with daily - list a behavior that you find annoying. Then take a look at yourself and at the situation and try to figure out WHAT you could be doing to reinforce it.
You might see what is reinforcing the behavior - if you do... you can simply stop reinforcing it. You might have a hard time finding what is reinforcing the behavior - if this happens... list an opposite behavior. Ask yourself, "What behavior would I like to have in its place?" When you know what it is... start reinforcing it. For example: when taking a child to the store you can simply stop reinforcing the child and let them cry. At the same time you can have a bag of raisins or a deck of Old Maid cards in your purse and when she is quiet (even for a second) you can say..."oh thank you for being a good shopper" as you hand over ONE raisin or ONE card. Reinforcing her quiet behavior - reinforce as many times as you can as you walk through the store.
Just note: 'reinforcing good behavior' as many times as possible should happen a few times. After that...we switch to the 'variable reinforcement schedule' (yes...go ahead and look that up!)
The unwanted behavior would become extinct if they didn't get a reinforcement out of it and/or a more wanted behavior can be reinforced; time to become a detective!

Lemonade for a hot day!

I do not know what the temperature is in your neck of the woods - but over here in North Cali. it is 104 degrees on my deck! So.... I thought I would share with you a great drink for those hot days as well as a great way to get rid of nasty toxins in your body (so drink these on the not so hot days as well!).

Juice one lemon (in Juicer)

A squeeze of raw honey

Water to taste.

Other things I like to throw in the juicer with the lemon (pick one or use any combination - heck...use them all for added benefit!):

a slim slice of ginger

a carton of raspberries

an entire cantalope (peeled)

slices of watermelon (peeled)

a carton of blueberries

Ban Food Colorings

I was reading this article today and I hope all of you write to the FDA about it.

In one part of the article is reads "'Based on these findings, there is no need for consumers to alter their purchasing and eating habits,' Brackett said. 'They and their children can safely enjoy food products containing these food colors'."

I believe WE ALL know that chemical food colors are NOT good for our children or ourselves. Their blatant disregard and lying about the safety of these food colors SMACKS of the cigarette companies saying Nicotine is not addictive. You know and I know...and everyone else knows - it can't be good for you. The problem isn't in the knowledge of it - the problem is in human behavior. They should do society a favor. They should do the right thing. BAN artificial colors (and while their at it, BAN artificial flavors as well!).Big business doesn't really help a person sleep at night - However, I suppose they all justifying by having so many departments that they can blame the next guy. Who's in charge there? LOL

I encourage anyone who cares about what they are eating (yes, YOU) or what they are giving to their children (yes, YOU AGAIN >grin<) - write to the FDA and tell them that it should be banned for the safety of those who do not have the strength of mind to avoid it (ME, YOU, and EVERYONE in between, it is a hard thing to avoid!)!!

As a side note, there are all natural food colorings that they could use.

The Article:
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080603/D912TJP80.html

The FDA comment link:
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/qa-top.html

Almond Milk!!

Earlier I posted about Soy milk and my eminent switch to Almond milk. It has been a month now and I am pleased to say - I can feel the difference. It is great! Also, almond milk does not have that goop that is sometimes at the end of the soy milk carton. Which, is gross to say the least. Normally, I only use these liquids in my smoothies and on the occasional cereal in the morning (crumble and raw oatmeal) and although vanilla or plain almond milk are not to my liking yet, they will be. I decided to start with Chocolate Unsweetened almond milk. The beauty of this is that I can not taste the chocolate, it doesn't really taste like anything. I do not see a significant taste change from the vanilla or original soy milk to the choc. unsweetened almond milk and that is why I decided to use choc almond milk. I didn't really want to suffer the taste change; who does?

Tools for change

Recently I was invited to a class on nutrition and health. I walked away frustrated and had to share it. The class was okay in the sense that it talked about what people should do (eat more fruits and veggies) and should not do (avoid starches, sugars, processed) but when it came to the area of how to apply it to ones life...that is where it fell short. They didn't give one example of what to do once the people left the class. In one ear - out the other. How can people learn if they do not apply it to their lives, even in small doses? One tool could have been - start making smoothies in the morning. One more tool could have been - start bringing almonds and pumpkin seeds to work for a snack in the day. Anything that would change your bad habits to good - is a tool that could be used. Write a sticky note that says "I want to be healthy" and place them around so that you can start to repeat it and believe it and work toward that goal. Sticky note reminders are tools.

The next time you go to a class - look for the tools that you can take home with you - if you do not see any, ask the instructor for some. It will help you and all the other people who are also in that class looking for tools.

We all need tools to help us fix those unwanted behaviors.

Ceasar Wrap

1 cup chopped romaine lettuce
1 cup chopped spinach
1 to 2 teaspoons (you decided) of Marie's Ceasar Dressing
a sprinkle of parmesian cheese.
Mix

Place on top of a heated tortilla shell
(optional)
sprinkle some grilled salmon on top
sprinkle some fresh salsa on top

Roll up and eat.

Not raw... but on the healthy side of cooked.

No, No, Soy?

It has come to my attention that soy isn't all that it is 'advertised' to be. It is an interesting turn of events for me, since... I switched my entire family from nasty milk products (a few years back) to soy.

Findings: Soy - is the top mucus producer of any plant.
That alone is huge. There are millions of people who suffer from allergies who do not NEED or WANT extra mucus. So, if we can eliminate it - why wouldn't we?
I am researching it like crazy and my research is not showing glowing reports on soy.
All the good press on "those healthy Japanese who live on soy" - they don't eat nearly the amount that is being reported. From what I can tell they are not eating any of the soy products the Americans consume in bucket loads. No. They eat soy in its natural, unprocessed state called edamame pods and very small amounts of tofu and miso soup.
This finding is not the end of the world - but it does change a few things in my life. Starting with my fruit smoothie in the morning (of which I like to put soy milk in).
My plan is to do an experiment; remove soy from my diet for 30 days - and since I do have the occasional allergies and they are hitting right now as everything is blooming - it should be easy to see if the removal of soy decreases the amount of mucus allergies cause. I do not do dairy (the TOP mucus maker) nor do I do a great deal of wheat (I tend to avoid bread except for the occasional tortilla shell). I will let you know of any more soy findings (good or bad) and later I will talk about my findings on this experiment.
I would love to hear from anyone who may or may not know more about this topic.

UPDATE: It has come to my attention that a certain amount of soy can decrease prostate cancer risk for men. Seek more information.

Friends for health!

A person really can not put a price tag on how much a friend is worth. It is always amazing when I spend time with my friends. It gives me a great deal of satisfaction listening to the things that have happened to them - funny stories from past and present, listening to information about their lives, and just basking in their crazy personalities. I love each and every one of them and it is a constant reminder on how important it is to go out and make friends. It is good for your mental health. It calms the spirit and soothes the soul. AND if you have a few CRAZY ones - all the better - because then you have laughter as well.
Today, my friends came over and pulled me out the door so that we could go to the coffee and smoothie cafe in town and chat over our favorite drinks. It still boggles my mind that they can be so loving and not once did they comment on how dark the circles are under my eyes or the fact that I hadn't even jumped in the shower! Because of fast paced events in my life - I haven't been getting any sleep (I don't recommend it) and life in general has been in chaos at my house. They may or may not have known it... but, I needed the break. It came at a good time.
It wouldn't have come at all... had I not had friends.

Pain Reduction - a plan that works!

Here are some articles that talk about how hypnosis really works for pain reduction.

In an article for Kaiser Permanente: "Hypnosis is suitable for patients with the following medical conditions: chronic headache, chronic back pain, psychogenic weakness or paralysis, chronic constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, panic attacks and phobias." http://xnet.kp.org/permanentejournal/Fall01/hypnosis.html



http://health.discovery.com/centers/althealth/pain/painmgt.html

http://www.hypnosisseattle.com/acute_pain.htm

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050326100346.htm